The Senate Appropriations Committee this week wrapped
up three weeks of public hearings on the proposed state budget. Below you will
find videos from all of my Q&A sessions with department heads during this weekís
hearings. Additionally, I have included highlights of topics covered by other
members.
Week One Recap
Week Two Recap

The Senate returns to voting session on Monday. You can
watch live at PASenateGOP.com.

Monday, March 7, 2016

Department of Human Services

Senator Mensch talks to Secretary Ted Dallas about the
growing concerns shared by service providers in the 24th Senatorial District,
which include questions regarding the support intensity scale and the
compensation for support service personnel.

The committee also discussed the following with Secretary Dallas:

Efforts to move disabled and senior citizens into community settings, as
opposed to more expensive nursing home care.

During the PA Department of Revenue/Lottery hearing,
Senator Mensch asks Secretary Eileen McNulty about the damaging effects that the
bank shares tax increase will have on the consumer. In addition, he emphasizes
that the Governor's proposed 10 percent to 11 percent tax increase will only
hurt the middle class.

Other topics discussed by members included:

The growth in operational and pension costs for the department.

The possible inclusion of Lottery machines in state-owned liquor stores.

The effect of the governorís proposed tax on casino promotional play.

Efforts to improve Sales and Use Tax collection.

Lottery marketing efforts and potential new sales outlets.

The ability of the Department of Revenue to coordinate with the
Department of Human Services to prevent fraud.

Natural gas extraction tax revenue estimates that appear to be greater
than what the market can support.

The scope of the governorís Executive Order pertaining to the minimum
wage.

Questioning Secretary Pedro Rivera, Senator Mensch notes
that only 19 cents of every dollar spent on education makes it into the
classroom. In addition, he stresses that PA needs to consider more measureable
standards and implement more accountability in order to ensure that every
education dollar spent has the greatest impact on education.

Other topics covered by the panel included:

The governorís proposed increases in spending on head start and pre-k
counts programs but not the early intervention program for IU's.

Driving out all new school spending through the new Basic Education
Funding Formula.

The fate of Keystone Exams.

State grants for high-skill careers.

Library funding and modern uses.

EITC Tax Credits for businesses in 2016-17

The departmentís requested funding increase exceeds the rate of
inflation.

Wage and benefit contracts at local level.

Prevailing wage mandates driving up the cost of school construction and
repairs.

Pennsylvania has a declining number of students but is spending more
money.

Pensions divert 30 percent of every school dollar from classroom.

The Administrationís use of a dedicated fund to pay off pension debt.

Ideas to reduce education costs.

Greater utilization of vocational-technical schools.

The impact of the governorís minimum wage executive order on school
districts.

Senator Mensch asks Health Secretary Karen Murphy and
Physician General Rachel Levine about the impact of the Governor's vetoes and
reduction in line items for preventative healthcare. In addition, he asks for
their input on the standards for cancer screenings.

The hearing also covered the following areas:

Why regional poison centers were blue-lined by the governor.

Automating the death certificate process and making it more efficient.

The schedule for inspecting hospice services.

Pennsylvaniaís low status in health indicators.

A reduction in the cystic fibrosis program funding and other programs
that were cut by the governor.

Raising the age for screening for various cancers.

Exceptions to the Clean Air Act.

Efforts to combat Lyme disease and the cost of implementation of Lyme
Disease Task Force recommendations.

Allegations against practices by Planned Parenthood and whether an
investigation took place.

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